Clasp.



G. N. EALL.

GLAS?. AZPLIOATION FILED JUNE 1, 1908.

Patented sept. 14,1909.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

i GEORGE NELSON HALL, OF PEWAUKEE, WISCONSIN.

CLASP.

Speccation of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 14, 1909.

Application filed June 1, 1908. serial No. 436,162.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE N. HALL, a 'citizen of the United States, and resident of Pewaukee, in the county of Waukesha and State of Visconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clasps; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof. l

My invention has for its object to provide simple, economical and eflicient clasps for various uses, the same being of the species disclosed in my prior patent No. 87 9,868, of February Q5, 1908; and said invention consists in what is herein particularly set forth with reference to the accompanying drawings and pointed out in claims.

Figure l of the drawings represents a front elevation of my improved clasp having parts thereof broken away and the swing jaws thereof in Dripping position, Fig. 2, a similar view of:` the clasp having its jaws in about the position shown in Fig. 5; Fig. 3, a side elevation of the clasp with said jaws in gripping position; Fig. 4, a transverse section of the clasp indicated by lines 4-4 in Fig. l; Fig. 5, a longitudinal section of the clasp indicated by lines 5-5 in Fig. 3, and Fig. 6, a front elevation of another form of said clasp.

Referring by letter to the drawings, A indicates a clasp-frame made from a metal plate unched out to provide aslot b or other form of aperture for the engagement of a strap or other suitable hanger, and a portion of the plate between forwardly projecting side flanges c of same is partly cut out and curled back to form a bearing cl, parallel to another bearing e formed by curling back a lip of said plate, both bearings being transversely of the plate central of same at a suitable distance apart.

Inturned pivot-branches f of a springwire loop B engage the upper bearing d of the frame A, and similar branches g of another spring-wire loop C engage the lower bearing e of said frame, these loops being the expansile and contractile swing jaws of the improved clasp. The eye-jaw B is straight and of gradually increasing width outward from the bearing d, and the tonguejaw C is of gradually decreasing width outward from the bearing e it being somewhat shorter than the jaw first aforesaid, the normal width of the upper end of said tonguejaw being approximately that of the adwhich it is passed in its entirety to be alternately under and over the same. The relative widths of the jaws are such as to provide for the passage of the one C through the one B by proper manipulation, and owing to the taper of these jaws in opposite directions a wedging action is had upon both incidental to grip or release of a garment or other article caught between the two and against the frame A of the clasp. This wedging action of the jaws, one upon the other, results in the contraction of the bearing-end of one and an expansion of the bearing-end of the other, and the grip or release being completed the bearing-ends of both jaws are normal. Spread of the bearing-ends of the jaws is limited by the anges c of the clasp-frame. When the jaws are in gripping position, the side-stretches of the eye-jaw B are caught under the overlying bends it of the tongue-jaw C, both jaws being then approximately parallel to each other and the frame A on independent planes. Hence to release the grip requires a lift of the tongue-jaw C and a wedging past the same of the eye-jaw B by manual effort.

A` portion of a garment or other pliable article to be gripped is folded on the tonguejaw C and the fold with said jaw is passed through the eye-jaw B, that is then forced back of the offsets it of the jaw aforesaid, whereby said article is caught fast between both jaws under the bends h of said tonguejaw and between said eye-j aw and the frame A of the clasp. Hence said article cannot become automatically separated from said clasp, this being an important feature of my improved clasp especially when the same constitutes part of a garment-supporter.

In Fig. 6, I have shown that the frame A of the clasp may be of suitable bent wire having eXpansile and contractile looped wire vjaws B, C, bent to form eyes f', g, re-

spectively engaged by transverse stretches of said frame. In this form of the clasp, the bends of the jaw C 72. are designed to overlie side stretches of the jaw B when said jaws are in gripping position, and a suspending-strap D is shown in connection with a transverse stretch of the wire claspframe.

The clasp as a whole, in either form shown, may be varied in matter of detail within the scope of the appended claims jacent portion of said eye-jaw through without departure from what is herein set forth as my invention.

I claim:

l. A clasp comprising a frame provided with transverse central bearings parallel to one another at a suitable distance apart, a loop-jaw constituting an eye hung in the upper one of said bearings with its side stretches overlying the frame, and an expansile and contractile loop-j aw constituting a tongue hung to swing in the lower one of the aforesaid bearings, the normal width of the upper end of the tongue being approximately that of the adjacent portion of the eye through which it is passed in its entirety to be alternately under and over the same.

2. A clasp comprising a frame provided with transverse central rbearings parallel to one another at a suitable distance apart, an expansile and contractile loop-jaw constituting an eye hung in the upper one of said bearings,V and a loop-jaw constituting a tongue hung to swing in the lower one of the aforesaid bearings, the width of the upper end of the tongue being approximately that of Jthe adjacent portion of the eye through which it is passed in its entirety to be alternately under and over the same.

3. A clasp comprising a frame provided with transverse central bearings parallel to one anotherat a suitable distance apart, and a pair of expansile and contractile tongue and eye loop-jaws hung to swing in said bearings, the normal width of the upper end of the tongue-'jaw being approximately that of the adjacent portion of the eye-jaw through which it is passed in its entirety.

4. A clasp comprising a frame Vprovided with transverse central bearings parallel to one another at a suitable distance apart, and a pair of expansile and contractile oppositely tapered tongue and eye loop-j aws hung to Swingin said bearings, the normal width of the upper end of t-he tongue-jaw being approximately that of the adjacent portion of the eye-j aw through which it is passed in its entirety.

ln testimony that I claim the foregoingl have hereunto set my hand at Pewaukee in the county of lVaukesha and State of Wisconsin in the presence of two witnesses.

GEORGEl NELSON HALL. 

